Mormon 3–6

The Fall of the Nephite Nation

Have you ever been worried about someone you love? Speaking of the people around him, Mormon said, “I had led them … and had loved them … with all my heart” (Mormon 3:12). Yet Mormon worried about and mourned for his people as they moved toward destruction because they refused to turn to God for help. This lesson can help you feel the importance of turning to Heavenly Father and the Savior in your life.

Provide an overview of important scripture storylines. Students can better understand the context and content of the scriptures when they see the big picture. Point out significant individuals, events, and prophetic teachings in a particular storyline. Encourage students to consider how these elements influence their understanding of the Lord’s gospel.

Student preparation: Invite students to try to recall a time when God helped them through a struggle because they asked Him for help.

Possible Learning Activities

What would you do?

Elder Spencer J. Condie of the Seventy told the story of a man named Murray Ling, who was driving across a bridge at night when he saw the car in front of him suddenly disappear. A large section of the bridge ahead of him had collapsed. Murray hit the brakes and stopped his car just in time.

• If you were in Murray’s situation, what would be some of the first things you would do after stopping your car?

Read the following account of what Murray chose to do. You may want to watch the video “Prophets Warning,” available at ChurchofJesusChrist.org, from time code 0:00 to 0:58.

Murray … began warning oncoming traffic of the disaster ahead. As he frantically waved his arms, to his horror, a car “swerved around him and plummeted into the abyss” (Stephen Johnson, “Over the Edge!” Reader’s Digest, Nov. 1977, p. 128). A second car barely stopped in time, but a third car showed no sign of slowing down and crashed into the Lings’ car at the edge of the bridge.

Suddenly a loaded bus headed toward Murray, ignoring his waving arms. (Spencer J. Condie, “A Mighty Change of Heart,” Ensign, Nov. 1993, 17)

• If you were in Murray’s situation, how would you feel if people ignored you? Would you give up trying to save them? Why or why not?

Much like Murray Ling, Mormon saw that his people were headed for destruction. As the leader of the Nephite armies, and as a prophet of God, Mormon did all he could to warn them, protect them, and teach them about their Savior. Unfortunately, most of his people ignored or rejected Mormon’s efforts.

Danger ahead for Mormon’s people

In His foreknowledge, God had been warning the Nephites for hundreds of years about what would happen if they continued to rebel against Him.

To see one example, read Helaman 13:8–10, looking for a prophecy that God made through Samuel the Lamanite over 300 years before Mormon was born. As you read, notice when the prophecy would be fulfilled. (See 1 Nephi 12:6, 11–19 and 3 Nephi 27:30–32 for more examples of God’s foreknowledge and warnings that would be fulfilled in Mormon’s day.)

• Why do you think God would make this known so far in advance?

Invite students to read the following passages and to think about why Mormon would try so hard to help his people even though he knew the prophecies of their destruction. Then invite them to share their insights with a partner. Answers might include Mormon’s desire to save as many people as he could even though he knew that the Nephite nation would be destroyed.

• Mormon 3:1–3, 12

• Moroni 9:3–5, 18–22 (Moroni shared a letter written by his father, Mormon.)

• What similarities do you see between Mormon’s efforts and desires and those of the Savior?

Calling upon God

Consider writing the following incomplete sentence on the board and inviting students to come to the board and fill in the blank with common teenage struggles.

• “Many teenagers today struggle with .”

Mormon shared one of the reasons the Nephites were having such a hard time with their struggles. Read Mormon 5:2, looking for what the Nephites did NOT do as they were struggling.

• How could what Mormon shared in verse 2 apply to many people today?

Finish the statement on the board so it reads as follows:

• “Many teenagers today struggle with without calling upon God for help.”

Help students understand that God will not always remove the things we struggle with but that He will help us through them if we turn to Him. Invite volunteers to share times that they have called upon God for help with one of the struggles on the board and how God helped them through it. Caution students not to share anything too personal with the class.

Invite students to ponder whether there are struggles in their lives that they have not been asking for God’s help with. Encourage them to seek His help in one of those areas and to notice the difference it makes over time.

The destruction of the Nephites

Consider displaying this image and inviting a student to share what it portrays. Use the material in the following paragraph if necessary.

After loving, teaching, and leading the Nephite armies for decades, Mormon was severely wounded in the final battle with the Lamanites. From the top of a hill, he surveyed what was left of the Nephite nation. Only 24 Nephite soldiers survived the slaughter, including Mormon and his son Moroni (see Mormon 6:9–15).

In Mormon 6, Mormon records the “last struggle of [his] people” (Mormon 6:6). Read Mormon 6:7, 10–15, looking for what happened to the Nephites in this final battle.

You may want to have students figure out how many Nephites gathered at the beginning of the battle and how many remained after the battle. They might notice that there were 23 Nephite commanders that each had 10,000 soldiers for a total of 230,000 Nephites. Only 24 Nephites survived this final battle.

Imagine being in Mormon’s position, mourning the loss of the people you love but knowing that you could still leave a short message for future generations. What would you want people in the latter days to know?

Read Mormon 5:10–11, 16–18; 6:16–20 to see some of the messages Mormon was inspired to engrave for us. You may want to mark phrases that you think people in our day most need to hear.

Consider inviting students to share the phrases they found with a partner. As students identify truths, you may want to write them on the board. The rest of this lesson focuses on the following truth. You may feel impressed to focus on a different truth that students identify.

One truth Mormon taught is that Jesus Christ stands with open arms to receive those who choose to repent and come unto Him (see Mormon 6:17).

Consider closing your eyes for a moment and imagining Jesus standing and looking at you with open arms. Record in your journal your thoughts, feelings, and impressions about what it means in your life that Jesus stands with open arms to receive you.

Encourage students to be careful to not share anything too personal if you discuss the following questions with the class.

• Which of Mormon’s teachings do you most need in your life? Why?

• What did Mormon want you to understand about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ?

• How do you think our world would be different if more people believed what Mormon wrote?

Commentary and Background Information

What does it mean to be “clasped [held tightly] in the arms of Jesus” (Mormon 5:11)?

Elder Kent F. Richards of the Seventy said:

All that will come may be “clasped in the arms of Jesus” [Mormon 5:11]. All souls can be healed by His power. All pain can be soothed. In Him, we can “find rest unto [our] souls” [Matthew 11:29]. Our mortal circumstances may not immediately change, but our pain, worry, suffering, and fear can be swallowed up in His peace and healing balm. (Kent F. Richards, “The Atonement Covers All Pain,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2011, 16)

Mormon 6:17. What can you learn from the imagery of Jesus standing “with open arms to receive you”?

Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles shared:

My brothers and sisters, it is my promise to you that increasing your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ will bring you added strength and greater hope. For you, the righteous, the Healer of our souls, in His time and His way, will heal all your wounds. No injustice, no persecution, no trial, no sadness, no heartache, no suffering, no wound—however deep, however wide, however painful—will be excluded from the comfort, peace, and lasting hope of Him whose open arms and whose wounded hands will welcome us back into His presence. (Neil L. Andersen, “Wounded,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2018, 86)

Elder Neal A. Maxwell (1926–2004) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles explained that Jesus himself is the gatekeeper and “he employeth no servant there” (2 Nephi 9:41). … I will tell you—out of the conviction of my soul—what I think the major reason is, as contained in another Book of Mormon scripture which says he waits for you “with open arms” (Mormon 6:17). That’s why he’s there! … That imagery is too powerful to brush aside. … He does wait for us with open arms, because his love of us is perfect (Neal A. Maxwell, “But a Few Days,” [address to Church Educational System religious educators, Sept. 10, 1982; punctuation modernized], 9–10).

Supplemental Learning Activities

Mormon 5:11. “Clasped in the arms of Jesus”

If it would help students to focus on the Savior’s desire to take us in His arms, consider displaying a picture of Him embracing someone, such as the following:

Then invite students to search Mormon 5:11 and Mormon 6:17, looking for phrases that could describe the image. Invite students to share what they think the phrases they found mean. (If helpful, you might share the statement from Elder Richards, Elder Andersen, or Elder Maxwell in the “Commentary and Background Information” section.)

Video option

If it would help students to see a visual representation of Mormon and Moroni mourning the destruction of the Nephites, consider showing the video “O Ye Fair Ones” (5:21).